


Akalon's Doom

by rompafrolic



Category: Homeworld
Genre: Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-05-18
Updated: 2018-05-18
Packaged: 2019-05-08 10:44:22
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 404
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14692560
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/rompafrolic/pseuds/rompafrolic
Summary: The Gaalsien Second Fleet bears down on Gamma Base.





	Akalon's Doom

Gaalsien sandskimmers are a nifty little machine. It floats about a metre above the sand. It can point in any cardinal direction while still maintaining top speed. It turns quickly, and accelerates quickly. But the best bit about it is its complete lack of crew. That also happens to be its worst aspect too. It can’t operate all that far from a carrier of some form; whether a Gaalsien fleet carrier, or a cruiser of some description.

It does however mean that when you spot a sandskimmer racing along a dip between dunes, or see one peeking over a ridge, that there’s some fanatics not too far behind. That’s when you send up flares and radio for support. Where there’s one sandskimmer, there’s always more.

This particular sandskimmer didn’t stop. It didn’t deviate from its path. And no other units followed it. It was the very definition of an anomaly. The perimeter turrets had armed themselves mere moments after the alarm was sounded. Those moments were often just enough time for a decisive Gaalsien strike to happen, but not this time. The skimmer just went past, not stopping or turning.

The Qwaar-Jet damned carrier came up. It swept out of the deep desert heat haze at top speed, sand billowing out in great plumes in its wake. Behind it came a small escort of assorted vehicles. Some rail assets, some anti-air assets, and a pair of cruisers. The turrets fired as soon as it was within range, which was within seconds, but they could barely scratch its paint. The outpost’s single railgun fired twice then retreated. Fighters were scrambled from the airbase further to the north, and the local Coalition carrier group was alerted. The small outpost started its evacuation.

A total of thirty-seven seconds after the sandskimmer was spotted all of the turrets had been destroyed, and the baserunner with its escort was being pursued by the horrifyingly fast carrier. Twelve seconds late the baserunner and its escort were charred wrecks scattered up the face of the dune they were climbing.

Another sandskimmer appeared, pausing at the top of the same dune, seeming to consider which direction to take. Then another joined it, and another. Suddenly the three split apart and followed the direction which the baserunner had seemed to take. Carrier Akalon and Gamma Base would face the wrath of the Gaalsien Second Fleet with no more than twenty minutes of warning.


End file.
